Internet of Things (IoT) is no longer a fancy technology for the future.  The IoT market has been steadily increasing and is projected to reach USD 457 billion by 2020. On the other hand 5G is anticipated to be the game changer in ICT. 5G networks are expected to not only drive us towards a more connected society, but also bring about socio-economic transformation in many ways – increasing productivity, sustainability, and well-being. The global 5G market is expected to grow at an overall CAGR of 97% and will be worth USD 251 billion by 2025. All this reflects that IoT and 5G technologies will only proliferate where thousands of consumers are expected to use connected devices in the coming years.

Here’s a quick roundup of the top companies that have announced their offerings in the IoT and 5G space at the MWC Americas 2018:

Samsung

Global electronics leader Samsung showcased its 5G and other mobile technologies at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) Americas 2018. Sprint who is Samsung’s telecom partner will feature Samsung’s 5G-ready Massive MIMO solutions which helps them increase LTE capacity, data speeds and offer a better mobile experience. Along with this, other Samsung products like Samsung SmartThings and IoT enabled Samsung products, devices – Galaxy Note9 and Galaxy Watch, Tab S4, SmartThings Tracker, AKG accessories and B2B mobility solutions were also displayed at the event.

Verizon

Verizon announced its fixed wireless access (FWA) 5G product at the MWC Americas 2018 which is expected to launch simultaneously in four US cities next month. This residential broadband service offering called Verizon 5G Home would be available to residents in Houston, Texas; Indianapolis, Indiana; and Los Angeles and Sacramento in California. Verizon also unveiled “5G Ultra Wideband” during the event in a bid to grasp the 5G advantage over its competitors in the US market.

Ericsson

Ericsson has announced the launch of range of new additions to its 5G hardware and software portfolio, including new radio access network (RAN) compute architecture, spectrum sharing between 4G and 5G bands and street macro transport technology. Ericsson is also providing T-Mobile with its latest 5G radio hardware that will help them to strengthen and expand the deployment of their nationwide 5G network.

Rohde and Schwarz

Germany based Rohde and Schwarz, a mobile network testing company launched the world’s first 5G NR network measurement solution at the MWC Americas 2018. This new solution will enable users in the 5G network ecosystem as well as regulators to measure the 5G NR network accurately, one of the biggest challenges in network planning. This solution is integrated into the Rohde and Schwarz mobile network testing Smart platformthat will help achieve superior 5G NR performance in all phases of the network lifecycle.

PCTEL

PCTEL Inc. which is a leader in Performance Critical TELecom solutions unveiled new precision scanning receivers for testing 5G networks at the Mobile World Congress. PCTEL’s 5G test tools will enable operators to efficiently clear new spectrum and roll out 5G networks worldwide while maintaining or upgrading existing network technologies. PCTEL’s new scanning receivers will provide the accuracy, insight, and flexibility that operators need to successfully manage their 5G networks and enable new use cases such as smart cities, fixed wireless access, and advanced IoT deployments.

Carnegie Technologies

Carnegie Technologies announced the launch of Longview IoT solution which is designed to empower businessesby providing IoT solutions that help them optimize their work, get immediate insights, and gain efficiency.  Carnegie has mentioned that Longview has been engineered for companies that want an IoT solution that just works, without the complexities and struggles of getting sensors, networks, software, and hardware from different vendors to work together. 

Spirent Communications

Spirent communications have announced LSA solutions which would help in critical network automation capabilities for top North American mobile operators at the MWC Americas this year. Spirent is bringing its latest service assurance capabilities to mobile emergency, VoLTE, data and messaging services in the United States and Mexico.These new deployments are expected to deliver seventimes faster service activation, millions in cost savings, higher-quality, and differentiated market offerings.

Semtech Corporation

Semtech Corporation demonstrated their LoRa devices and wireless frequency technology at the MWC 2018. LoRa Technology is the device, network, and applications of IoT which is targeted at businesses and consumers that need simple, versatile, scalable and easy-to-implement solutions.Semtech also anticipated that over 200,000 LoRa enabled gateways would be deployed globally, that will continue providing the capacity to support significant network expansion of over one billion end nodes.

MWC Americas has proved to be a significant platform for companies from the wireless industry to showcase their solutions that impact the future of mobile technology. The need for improvements in IoT and 5G is driven by the ever-increasing need to save time and maximizing productivity in today’s fast-paced world.It remains to be seen whether 5G and IoT are able toprovide seamless connectivity and performance to thousands of connected devices that would be active by the end of this decade. 

Sourav Mukherjee is the CEO of Netscribes. Inc - a global market intelligence firm that helps corporations achieve strategic objectives through a unique combination of qualitative and quantitative research, social media analytics, and IP research.